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2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

E. R. HEARN. Machine for Drying Leaf-Tobaqco. NoQ229QI26. Patented June 22,1880.

2 Sheets-Sheet E. R. HEARN- Machine for Drying Leaf-Tobacco." No.v 229,126. Patented June 22,1880.

1THESSESI %/w{.

MPETERS, PHQTO-UTHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON nv Cv UNIT D STATES PATENT fission.

EDWIN R. HEARN, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO P.

LORILLARD & 00.,

OF SAME PLACE.

MACHINE FOR DRYING LEAF-TOBACCO.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 229,126, dated June 22, 18 80.

Application filed October 4, 1879.

To all. whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN R. HEARN, of Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements relating to Machines for Drying Leaf-Tobacco, of which the following is a specification.

It is especially adapted for drying the material at a certain stage in the manufacture of a fine quality of chewingtobacco by first subjecting it to a current of warm air and afterward cooling and completing the drying by a current of cold air, thus avoiding the exposure of the delicate material to long-continued warmth. I will describe the apparatus as thus worked.

The following is a description of what I consider the best means of carrying out the invention.

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification.

Figure l is a general side elevation Fig. 2, a plan view, and Fig. 3 avertical section. Figs. 4 and 5 are vertical sections in planes at right angles to Fig. 3. Fig. 4 is on the line YY, and Fig. 5 is on the line Z Z in Figs. 1 and 3. Figs. 6 and 7 show certain portions of the same on a larger scale. Fig. 6 is a part of the section shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a part of the section shown in Fig. 5.

. Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the figures.

The drying apparatus is formed with hollow chambers or sections side by side, having currents of air rising in each. The tobacco-leaf is introduced on racks of wire-netting, which may be nearly'similar to those long used in kilns or drying-rooms, but a little deeper. The racks should be about five feet long and two feet wide, the bottom or body of wire-netting, and the sides and ends of wood--say four inches high and half an inch thickwith the netting nearly halfway up in the inclosing wood frame. These racks, each carrying a proper quantity of the" tobacco-leaf, are piled one upon another and caused to slowly descend in one section of the apparatus. The

attendant continually adds fresh racks at the top. Theracks at the bottom are moved across from the bottom of this first pile to the bottom of an adjacent pile in the adjoining sec tion, where it commences to be elevated. This second pile is slowly elevated, the top ones being successively removed.

In carrying out the invention I make one revolving shaft give all the motions bya very simple mechanism. I attach importance not only to the motions ultimately attained, but also to the simplicity of the mechanism by which these varied motions are secured.

Referring to the drawings, the single letter A is used to designate the entire stationary parts. I will designate the chambers or spaces as a a 8250., in which the racks B, supporting the tobacco, are received to be subjected to the treatment for drying and cooling.

The bottom of the first chamber, a, receives a current of warm dry air through a pipe, m, from a blower and heater, (not represented;) but it may be of any ordinary or suitable character.

The bottom of the next chamber, a is connected by a pipe, 1%, to another blower, (not represented,) which forces an active current of cold air into the bottom of said second chamber, a The air rising througheach bears awaysome of the moisture and causes it to be discharged through any suitable flue into the atmosphere.

The air rising in the secondchamber, a is cold, and when the tobacco, which is warmed in its descending movement through the first chamber, a, is again cooled in its ascending movement in the chamber c it arrives at the end of its route dried to the proper condition, and also cooled.

The first chamber, a, is kept filled with racks, which rest one upon another, and descend intermittently as each is successively removed on reaching the bottom. A transferring mechanism moves the last rack horizontally forward and introduces it into the nextpile, so that it forms the bottom rack thereof. In this pile it is lifted successively by the constant introduction of fresh racks underneath until it appears at the top, when it is again moved horizontally forward either on a new descending gile, as above described, or to be directly discharged upon an inclined chute, A, as here shown.

Either way the operation is automatic and continuous for an indefinite period.

D is a constantly-revolving shaft driven by a pulley, d, which receives motion by abeltv from a steam-engine or other power. (Not represented.)

D D are cams keyed on the shaft D. They act on cross-yokes E, each of which carries two vertical rods, (2 e grooved in the inside of the respective chambers a M. The lower end of each rod 0' e is formed with a mortised enlargement or strap, which contains a movable slide or catch, serving at proper times as an inward projection or hook. The efiects of the working of the rods 6 e c e are substantially different, 6 and their contained catches 6* being adapted to lower the racks which rest on them, while 0 and their contained. catches e** are adapted to raise the racks whichrest on them. All reciprocate vertically at the same time. The catch mounted in the lower end of eachrode and c is beveled fromthe inner face on the lower side.

As the yoke E sinks, the catches a in the rods 6 are forced inward by striking the fixed cam-surfaces A, and it follows, from the beveled under side and square upper side of the catches c that at each descent of the yokes E, and consequently of the rods 6 the catches at the bottom of these rods snap under and .engagewith the lowermost rack. At each ascent of the same parts the tier of racks in the chamber a are lifted. During the periodwhile they are lifted a rack is transferred from. the other chamber, a, so that on the next descent the tier remains elevated in consequence of the accession below, and on the next descent of the rods 0 they engage that bottom one andlift it, and so onin succession. The other chamber, a has fixed stops A*, which force back the catches at each descent, and cause them to lower instead of raise-the racks. In the last'part of the ascending motion of the yoke E the rods 0 c engage their transverse sliding catches or projections 0* 6* under the next to the lowermostrack B by being forced inward by the fixed cam-surfaces Z* and slightly lift the whole tier above. The lowermost rack is then pushed across under the other pile by means to be presently described. Now, on the lowering motion which follows, the descent of the rods 0 lowers the tier of racks B, with their contents, steadily and moderately until the lowest is near. the bottom of the chamber a. At that point the cross slide or catchxe in each rod 6 is defiected outward or moved away from the racks by its beveled inner side striking against a fixed stop, A So soon as this deflection has been carried to a sufficient extent the catches or projections 6* become disengaged and allow missthe lowest rack and engage under the next rack and again slightly lift it, and again allow the one below to be removed then the operation of lowering is repeated.

The transference is effected by rods g, which reciprocate in horizontal grooves in the sides of the chambers close to the bottom. On the end of each is a projection, g having one side squared and the other beveled, as shown. Each rod springs inward a little, and at each movement in one direction the projection 9* slides idly across, but on the return motion the projection engages with its square face against the corners of the lowermost rack and carries it with it. There is a sufficient opening at the bottom of the partition between the chambers a. a to allow the rack to be thus transferred across underit. A similar pair of rods, h, provided with projections h", is traversed on each: side at the top of the chambers a a These rods effect the automatic removal of the top rack from the ascending tier.

1 effect the horizontal movement of both. the pairs of rods, 9 and h, as follows: Both pairs are harnessed together by a yoke, F, and both. are moved-simultaneously by means of links I, which connect from a pivot, f, on the yoke toanother pivot, j, on the lower end of a peculiarly-curved lever, J, which lever turns on a fixed center, j, on the outside of the box. The arms D carrying projections or crank-pins W,

are keyed on'the shaft D, and the parts are so.

arranged that at each revolution of the shaft D each projection d strikes the lever J below the curve therein and moves the lever forward until the projections 01 enter the curved recesses in the corresponding levers J and are no longer effective. Alittle later the rotation of the shaft D brings the projections d into contact with another set of levers, K, which are adapted to compel the return motion. This set of levers are bell-crank in form, and turn on fixed centers 70, and act on the latter by means of anti-friction rollers k. The projections 01 strike the shorthorizontal arms of the levers K and move them upward. This motion causes the long arm carrying the rollers k to act each on the corresponding levers J, to induce the proper return motion.

I have represented the lower. ends of the levers K as tiedto the respective levers J by a slight link, k embracing the latter. I prefer this construction, but I do not esteem it absolutely essential. This construction and arrangement of the levers J and K affords, in combination with the revolving shaft D and the connected projections (1 a reliable and. simple means of inducing the proper reciprocation of the rods 9 and h, and consequently the proper horizontal motions of the racks at the proper times. It allows a long period of rest while the projections d are sweeping idly around from the vicinity of the center jsomething like a half of a revolution. The entire movements of the racks F, and consequently of the rods 9 and hand the two racks engaged respectively thereby, are effected during less than half of a revolution of the shaft B. The

cams D are so formed that they hold the yokes E and the tier of racks in each of the chambers a a steadily up during the entire period This operation may be still further repeated,

if preferred. It is simply necessary to extend the apparatus and so arrangeit that the transference effected by the rods h of the top rack from the pile in 0. places the rack on the top of the tier in the next chamber succeeding.

Modifications may be made in many of the details.

If I use only one pair of chambers, the motion of the racks B mustbe sufficiently slow to allow the drying to be properly effected at one descent and elevation; but if I use two or three sets of chambers, so as to hold the tobacco in the machine longer, treating it all the time with the drying air, I can make the motion of the machinery much more rapid, and consequently treat the tobacco much faster with a given size of machine.

1 can, with any or all the forms of the apparatus, supply both the chambers a a with a current of warm air. In such case the drying will be considerably more rapid in an apparatus of a given size and capacity. For many kinds of tobacco this will be the preferable mode of working. To thus work, the only change from the above description is to supply warm air instead of cold through the pipe 'n.

I claim as my invention-- 1. In a machine for drying tobacco or analogous material, the case A, with the chambers a a and a series of racks, B, with automatic mechanism, substantially as described, for.

moving them in such chambers, all substantially as herein specified.

2. In a machine for drying tobacco or analogous material by blowing currents of air through or among the same, the chambers a a in combination with eacn other and with devices, e 0 for automatically lowering a series of racks in the chamber a and forautomatically raising a corresponding series in the chamber a all arranged for joint operation as and for the purposes herein specified.

3. The machine described, having in combination, first, provisions for circulating air through two or more chambers in a fixed casing; second, separate portable racks for presenting the tobacco therein and, third, automatic machinery for transferring said racks down through the first chamber, across the bottom, and up through the second chamber, all substantially as and for the purposes specified.

4. In a drying-machine, the shaft D, cams D, yokes E, rods 6 0 and projections 0* a, in combination with each other and with the case A, having chambers a a and with racks B, substantially as herein specified.

5. Means, e e 0* 6 for raising and lowering the racks B therein, means, in n, for blowing away the moisture, and means, 9 h, for transferring the racks horizontally at the bottom and at the top of the several tiers, in combination with each other and with the case A, having chambers a (0 substantially as and for the purposes herein specified.

6. In a machine for treating tobacco and analogous material, the levers J and K, arranged as shown, in combination with the revolving shaft B, carrying the cranks or projections b and with the connected devices, g and h, for effecting the horizontal movements of the racks at the top and bottom of the tiers, as herein specified.

7. The combination, in a tobacco-treating machine, of the shaft D, cams D, arms D yokes E, rods 0 c and projections a and also with the arms D pins d, levers J andK, links I, yokes E F, and rods 9 and h, with their projections 6* g*, arranged for joint operation relatively to each other and to the casing A, havin g the chambers a a containing the racks B, as and for the purposes herein specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 11th day of September, 1879, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWIN R. HEARN.

Witnesses:

THOMAS D. STETSON, CHARLES O. STErsoN. 

